BaseballAmerica.com: Prospects: Daily Dish: Daily Dish: May 24

Even though Triple-A Indianapolis outfielder Adam Boeve went 0-for-3 in Tuesday's 2-0 win against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, the 25-year-old has been on fire since being called up from Double-A Altoona.

Boeve (which rhymes with groovy), a 12th-round pick of the Pirates in 2003 out of Northern Iowa, was promoted last Thursday and rattled off four straight multi-hit games after hitting .333/.407/.478 in 138 at-bats at Altoona. In his brief time with Indianapolis, the 25-year-old is hitting .556/.579/.778 in 18 at-bats.

"He really just improved his pitch selection and is controlling the strike zone better than he ever has," Pirates field coordinator Jeff Bannister said. "And in doing that, he's become a true professional hitter. In talking to (Indianapolis manager) Trent Jewett, they really haven't found a weakness in his approach in Triple-A yet.

"For him to be able to do what he's doing, it's a real credit to his work ethic and his patience."

Heading into the season, Boeve found himself squeezed out of a deep outfield that included Rajai Davis, Ray Sadler, and Rich Thompson--as well as guys on the bubble like Chris Duffy and Nate McLouth. The Pirates sent him back to Double-A, where he spent the second half of 2005 after putting up .313/.419/.538 numbers at high Class A Lynchburg.

"A lot of guys would have hung their heads in having to repeat a level, but he just went about his business," Bannister said. "He went out and worked hard every day and things are paying off for him now."

Hard work was important, but so too was showing the maturity to understand and accept his assignment. While he has decent power--he hit 28 homers in 2004 at low Class A Hickory--Boeve tended to get long in his swing and pulled almost everything to left field.

"He had some holes out away from him, there's no question," Bannister said. "He's a big guy with long arms and he got really vulnerable when he started hooking pitches.

"But now, he's going with those pitches away from him and using the whole field a lot more effectively. At the same time, he now knows how to pick his spots, go to his strength and has enough bat speed to pull balls to left. He's become a much more complete hitter."

--CHRIS KLINE

De La Cruz Control

Phillies righthander Julio de la Cruz missed the last two seasons because of Tommy John surgery and shoulder surgery, so he could be excused for being a bit rusty early in the season.

But after giving up 14 earned runs in his first 13 innings at high Class A Clearwater, the 25-year-old Dominican has shaken off the rust in a big way. He struck out 11 while allowing just one run on two hits over 7 1/3 innings against Jupiter on Tuesday, giving him 29 strikeouts in 21 innings over his last three starts.

"He was a little overwhelmed early on, and I think he was more concerned that something injury-related was going to happen again," Clearwater pitching coach Scott Lovekamp said. "But over his last three starts, his command has gotten so much better. It's great to see him blossom, basically out of him just creating more of a comfort zone through getting more experience."

The Phillies decided in spring training that they needed to put de la Cruz on the fast track because he is 25 and had never pitched above short-season Batavia, where he went 1-6, 4.37 in 2003. His stuff has never looked better. His fastball was up to 96 mph two starts ago and he hit 94 several times Tuesday, and his 83-84 mph slider is progressing.

"The only thing he's changed mechanically is that he changed his leg kick a little bit, which has freed him up more," Lovekamp said. "His fastball has been very good, though he left some up in the zone last night. His slider isn't all the way back from what it was, but it's getting better and better all the time."

--AARON FITT AND CHRIS KLINE

Garcia Goes The Distance

Ramon Garcia wasn't perfect last night, but he was close. The Tigers lefthander was the model of efficiency in throwing a one-hit shutout to give low Class A West Michigan a 3-0 victory over South Bend.

"(It was) the best game I've seen pitched in a long time," Whitecaps manager Matt Walbeck told the Grand Rapids Press. "He mixed his speeds and had the batters off balance. It was a lot of fun to watch."

Garcia needed just 78 pitches, as he struck out just two and walked only one and faced two batters over the minimum in a game that lasted an hour and 50 minutes.

"Every batter that came up, I knew I'd get him out," Garcia told the paper. "And I was throwing the first pitch for a strike."

This type of dominance has been customary of late for the 21-year-old. Yesterday was his second consecutive complete game and he has allowed just two earned runs in his last 34 innings. On the season, Garcia is 6-1, 1.05 with a 47-8 strikeout-walk ratio in 60 innings. Opponents are batting just .167 against him. He is third in the Midwest League in ERA while leading in innings. He does not have a true plus-pitch, but has an advanced feel and is able to command three average pitches.

Garcia was signed out of the Dominican Republic in June 2004 and spent that summer in the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League. He pitched in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League last summer and went 5-3, 3.65 with 25 strikeouts and 14 walks in 57 innings.

--MATT MEYERS

QUICK HITS

• Athletics top prospect Daric Barton injured his elbow in Triple-A Sacramento's Tuesday game against Iowa. After I-Cubs infielder Tony Womack bunted a ball down the third-base line, Sacramento third baseman Scott McLain charged and fired to Barton at first. Barton stretched down the line and collided with Womack. His left arm snapped back, and the early diagnosis is a hyperextended elbow. Results from X-rays yesterday were not immediately available. "I feel like it's going to be a while (until he returns)," River Cats manager Tony DeFrancesco told the Sacramento Bee . . . The Rangers called up outfielder Jason Botts from Triple-A Oklahoma. Botts, a 46th-round pick in 1999, was hitting .318/.373/.615 in 148 at-bats for the RedHawks. The 25-year-old outfielder appeared in 10 games for the Rangers last season, going 8-for-27 (.296). To make room for Botts, Texas sent infielder Drew Meyer to Oklahoma . . . Double-A Midland righthander Brad Ziegler returned to his old stomping grounds at Springfield on Tuesday, but the results were less than the former Missouri State star had hoped for. Ziegler, who helped lead the Bears to the 2003 College World Series, allowed six earned runs on nine hits over six innings in the Rock Hounds' 9-7 loss. The big blow came from Cardinals left fielder Cody Haerther, who hit a two-run homer off Ziegler in the sixth. Haerther, a sixth-rounder in 2002, broke out of a 4-for-45 slump by going 2-for-4 with three RBIs. "It's about time," Haerther told the Springfield News-Leader. "There are two kinds of slumps: There's one where the ball looks like BB's being shot out of a gun, and there's other ones where you're making contact and you're having good swings and it's not falling--and that's what I've been going through; a lot of sleepless nights." Haerther is hitting .227/.303/.414 in 128 at-bats . . . Rangers righthander Eric Hurley was placed on the disabled list at high Class A Bakersfield with a right wrist sprain. Hurley was 3-2, 2.82 in 54 innings this season . . . Bakersfield center fielder Jayce Tingler extended his hitting streak to 16 games Tuesday against Modesto, going 1-for-2 with three walks. The 5-foot-8, 155-pound Tingler is hitting .358 on the year with 27 walks and just 15 strikeouts in 159 at-bats.